Definition of reconnaissance
: a preliminary survey to gain information; especially : an exploratory military survey of enemy territory
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Examples of reconnaissance in a Sentence
There are two helicopters available for reconnaissance.
They did a reconnaissance of the enemy's position.
Recent Examples of reconnaissance from the Web
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L3 integrated the intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance mission systems on G550s sold to Australia, Israel and Singapore and for other special-mission models sold to Japan and Germany.
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In December, 2001, Nate Fick, a young captain in a Marine reconnaissance unit near Kandahar, Afghanistan, was checking on his men.
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On Monday, March 19, 1917, three Americans strapped into the cockpits of their single-seat biplanes on a French airfield, and embarked on a reconnaissance mission.
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U.S. reconnaissance aircraft were overhead watching the facility but also did not see the civilians, Isler said.
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Then a colleague suggested Vancouver, and Pearson went on a reconnaissance mission.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'reconnaissance'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of reconnaissance
French, literally, recognition, from Middle French reconoissance, from Old French reconoistre to recognize
First Known Use: 1779
RECONNAISSANCE Defined for English Language Learners
reconnaissance
playDefinition of reconnaissance for English Language Learners
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: military activity in which soldiers, airplanes, etc., are sent to find out information about an enemy
RECONNAISSANCE Defined for Kids
reconnaissance
playDefinition of reconnaissance for Students
: a survey (as of enemy territory) to get information
Learn More about reconnaissance
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Spanish Central: Translation of reconnaissance Nglish: Translation of reconnaissance for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of reconnaissance for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about reconnaissance
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